Slip Slidin’ Away – The Apiarist

Synopsis: Cooler and shorter days leaves much less time for the important ultimate tidying of hives earlier than wintry weather. Have in mind to take away Apivar strips and test the retail outlets. New wintry weather jobs come with wax extraction and (extra) honey preparation.

Advent

Slip Slidin’ Away, the name of a Paul Simon track launched 46 years in the past this month, could also be a word that smartly describes this beekeeping season because it disappears within the rearview replicate.

There are nonetheless issues to do however, daily, appropriate prerequisites during which to do them are getting rarer. Not more nipping right down to the apiary within the early night to “test on a couple of hives” … as a substitute it’s a case of hoping the autumnal climate goes to be sufficiently benign that you’ll be able to – if you wish to have to open the hives in any respect – get in and get out with out annoying the cluster or chilling the bees.

And that’s with out taking into consideration the second one named typhoon (Babet) of the wintry weather which is because of deliver 100-200+ mm of rain to my east coast apiaries lately. With that a lot water there will probably be intensive flooding and roads washed out.

I would possibly not be capable of get to the apiaries in any respect this weekend, let on my own open the hives.

The approaching arrival of Typhoon Babet approach I’ve booked every other resort – giving BEAR Scotland a few further days to mend the roads – so I will whole the previous couple of very important pre-winter duties within the apiary earlier than the elements closes in utterly.

Those duties are all related to the general arrangements of the colonies for the wintry weather; casting off the Apivar strips now that mite remedy is finished, checking the degrees of retail outlets, tidying up the stays after feeding the colonies and strapping down the hives securely for the storms forward.

I’m hoping I’m no longer too overdue .

Apivar strips

Many readers use miticides as opposed to Apivar. They use Formic Professional or Apiguard or one in all a number of oxalic acid-containing arrangements.

On the other hand, they practice some kind of poisonous homebrewed concoction of doubtful efficacy, whilst repeatedly having a look over their shoulder in case the regional bee inspector turns up unannounced.

However, in overdue summer time/early autumn, I exploit Apivar. It really works smartly, it’s temperature unbiased and it’s provide for a longer length – two whole brood cycles – making sure the security of the all-important wintry weather bees all over their building.

If there’s a overdue Indian summer time and my robust colonies make a decision to rob collapsing mite-ridden hives within the neighbourhood, the continuing presence of Apivar – most often the strips are within the bins for 8-10 weeks – guarantees any mites that hitch a trip again to my apiary meet an premature finish.

Midway in the course of the remedy length (a couple of weeks in the past now) the strips had been got rid of, scraped blank of propolis and repositioned adjoining to the brink of the contracting brood nest. This maximises remedy efficacy.

The opposite factor that is helping remedy efficacy is the absence of standard resistance to amitraz, the energetic element in Apivar. One near-certain approach to inspire the improvement of resistance is to reveal mites to sub-lethal or hint concentrations of amitraz, for instance in strips which were used.

For this reason strips should be got rid of from the hive as soon as the remedy length is whole.

So – regardless of the climate – after I after all get to the apiary I’ll be opening the hives and casting off the strips.

Gently, gently

The Apivar strips are suspended within the hole between frames the use of a cocktail stick … or, if I didn’t have any cocktail sticks, through sticking the tab on the height of the strip into the brush just below the highest bar of a body.

Not one of the hives were inspected since mid/overdue August. As a end result, all of the frames will probably be firmly propolised in position.

The strips will even now be totally caught and – assuming I’ve were given them situated as it should be – surrounded with tightly packed bees.

Don’t merely clutch the highest of the strip and wrench upwards. This inevitably rolls bees between the strip and the body and virtually at all times crushes bees, leaving somewhat vertical path of loss of life and destruction.

Bees dislike being rolled and truly dislike being beaten.

It’s a long way much less annoying to the colony to prise the frames 5-10 mm aside on the lugs closest to the strip that must be got rid of, moderately ‘waggle’ the strip freed from any entombing propolis and gently withdraw it … with out rolling, squashing or killing any bees.

You don’t wish to take away any frames. Within the picture above merely take away the dummy board and prise the body lugs aside on one facet of the hive best.

Get started with the Apivar strip closest to the yellow arrow. Prise the lugs aside, take away the strip and gently push the frames in combination once more. Then do the Apivar strip through the pink arrow. Performed in that order there’s much less resistance when shifting propolised frames.

This takes an issue of moments … a long way higher than discovering the strips once more in April!

It’s a wrap

I feed best fondant within the autumn. Most often a unmarried brood colony gets one 12.5 kg block of fondant, break up down the center, opened like a e-book and laid fondant-face down – nonetheless wrapped – on a queen excluder excessive bars of the frames. An empty tremendous is used to supply ‘headspace’ to deal with the fondant block.

Framed cord queen excluders – with a beespace beneath the rim – are to be most well-liked for this reasonably than the el cheapo plastic or zinc sheets that lie flush at the height bars.

With a framed excluder you’ll be able to simply prise it up must you wish to have to get entry to the brood field … for instance, to reposition the Apivar strips.

A month or so after including the fondant it’ll be completed – every so often quicker – however in most cases after the Apivar strips wish to be scraped and repositioned.

Earlier than the colony is closed up for the wintry weather the tremendous, fondant wrapping and queen excluder wish to be got rid of. I would like my colonies to don’t have any deadspace over them into which treasured heat can get away.

Colonies are robust and also you’re prone to in finding masses of bees over the empty wrapper. Don’t simply smoke them difficult and take a look at and get them to transport down. As a substitute, with out casting off the tremendous, gently pull up the plastic from the centre – it’ll be propolised down – inflicting the bees to lose their grip and fall off. Necessarily you’re the use of the tremendous as a ‘funnel’. Shake the plastic over the funnel, and then give them a pant or two of smoke.

Wait … the bees must transfer down and you’ll be able to then take away the tremendous and queen excluder.

All performed. Upload the crownboard, insulation and roof.

Au revoir.

Outside duties

Through mid/overdue October right here in Scotland the bees, in the event that they’re flying in any respect, best achieve this for an hour or 3 round noon. Early mornings and overdue afternoons are too chilly. Alternatively, it’s no longer so chilly that it’s ugly to be outdoor, so it is a just right time of the yr to fan the flames of the steam wax extractor.

I constructed this sort of a number of years in the past however in the end changed it with a Thorne’s Easi-Steam which is a bit more environment friendly because it haemorrhages much less steam, and so works a little sooner.

Along with the absence of flying bees, the fall could also be a great time to extract any wax from outdated frames earlier than the damned wax moths get to them.

You don’t get a lot wax from outdated, darkish brood frames, however you do get some. It almost certainly received’t be just right sufficient to make candles from, however you’ll be able to use it to make very good firelighters or industry it in for brand new basis.

Queen excluders used when feeding fondant are virtually at all times closely propolised and/or have loads of brace comb added above them.

You’ll be able to laboriously scrape this off or you’ll be able to simply stack them within the steam wax extractor, strap the whole lot up tight and tool up the steam generator.

Which – as a result of I’m lazy – is strictly what I do.

It’s then merely a case of scraping the picket body freed from heat propolis, permitting them to cool and dry, after which therefore flame sterilising them earlier than the brand new season begins.

Nuc feeders

I’ve were given an entire wintry weather of DIY forward of me, however there are a couple of initiatives that wish to be finished earlier than the wintry weather as they’re wanted all over the wintry weather.

The perfect (and due to this fact the primary to be finished ) was once butchering editing some extra nucleus feeders for fondant this wintry weather.

I’m overwintering extra nucs this yr than same old. Maximum are in Thorne’s Everynuc poly nucleus hives. Despite the fact that those have an integral feeder at one finish of the brood field it may be a long way clear of tightly clustered bees.

I’ve due to this fact changed the highest poly feeder – designed for feeding syrup – through uninteresting a couple of 3 cm holes via it. I will then upload a 1-3 kg block of fondant without delay over the clustered bees must I wish to. I’ve by no means used those feeders for syrup however have effectively used this variation on feeders in earlier winters.

I don’t suppose I’ve sufficient feeders for nucs, so I’ll best use them on those who really feel gentle. The rest will obtain fondant top-ups within the integral feeder if wanted.

Honey

My honey gross sales in most cases ramp up within the autumn because the shops I promote in get extra consumers short of espresso, truffles and a convivial environment reasonably than the howling winds and using rain on be offering outdoor.

I’m due to this fact very busy getting ready, jarring and labelling honey.

I didn’t have (or couldn’t in finding) an appropriate effective grain, seed honey for making mushy set honey .

I’ve mentioned this system of getting ready honey in the past. Necessarily you soften some coarsely crystallised – most often oil seed rape or different fast- and hard-crystallising, prime glucose, honey – after which upload a ‘seed’ honey with a effective crystal construction. The cooling honey re-crystallises across the effective crystals provide within the seed, to supply a stupendous delicate ‘soften at the tongue’, spoonable and spreadable mushy set honey.

There’s extra to it than that (in fact) and it’s a procedure that takes time and rather cautious temperature regulate. For the reason that re-crystallisation optimally happens at 14°C it’s a lot more uncomplicated to make mushy set honey within the autumn and wintry weather.

Despite the fact that you’ll be able to simply purchase a jar from the grocery store, it’s simple to organize your personal fine-grained seed honey. You want a rough grained honey, a pestle and mortar and a few elbow grease .

Merely grind the honey, a spoonful at a time, till it’s super-smooth. You’ll want about 10% (through weight) of the overall you wish to have to organize. A lot much less and re-crystallisation takes for much longer.

Hold on, what came about to the Rapido honey creamer?

About 18 months in the past I described the manufacturing of ‘creamed’ honey the use of a fast-rotating stainless-steel ‘paddle’ or creamer . That is no longer soft-set honey, however this procedure must produce a in a similar way fine-grained ‘soften at the tongue’, spoonable and spreadable honey.

Will have to and in most cases does.

However every so often the honey partly separates; you find yourself with a bucket containing predominantly fine-grained honey in conjunction with some a lot coarser honey crystals which sink to the ground of the bucket … or jar.

I’ve had one or two batches that – even if effectively flavoured – had been disappointing as a result of that they had a deficient texture or look.

A minimum of that was once my opinion. I by no means had any court cases from consumers and I proceed to get repeat orders, but it surely was once a little vexing. After processing, maximum buckets could be very best, super-smooth and frivolously textured. However once in a while I’d get a dud I used to be a long way from pleased with.

My bet was once that the honey that processed poorly was once a mix of two considerably other nectars, with other sucrose/glucose content material and due to this fact crystal buildings. I’ve been retaining notes on what works and what doesn’t (remembering that I don’t have any approach to decide the sucrose/glucose or nectar content material) and can file again after additional checking out.

If somebody has skilled the similar scenario (and has solved it) I’d have an interest to understand.

Heather

I’ve nonetheless were given a stack of supers containing heather honey to extract. It was once a shockingly just right season taking into account how deficient the realm is and the quantity of rain we had within the weeks earlier than and all over the heather flowering.

The heather is an advantage after an differently deficient summer time. The heather honey will probably be nice to both promote ‘natural’ or to make use of for the manufacturing of heather blends, frequently most well-liked through consumers who like the flavor however no longer the energy of natural heather honey.

Having lined each flat floor – horizontal and vertical – in wax and honey final yr whilst extracting simply 15 kg from a few supers the use of the weigh down and pressure way I’m going to do one thing other this yr.

Lifestyles is just too brief to spend a number of months elbow-deep in a honey and wax slurry.

Additional information when I’ve, a) began, b) succeeded, and c) wiped clean up afterwards.

Subsequent June … most likely.

Within the period in-between, Mull seems to be on hearth …

Crimson sky at evening …

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